Potshots at Rein over war zone visit are off target

In politics, it seems, no good deed ever goes unpunished. Last weekend Therese Rein made a surprise, even historic, visit to Afghanistan to help raise the spirits of Australian troops. They appeared to give her a warm welcome when she stepped out of a C-17 with her husband, Prime Minister Kevin Rudd. Certainly it was a better reception than she got back home, where various mean-spirited media decided to take potshots at her. Surely they should have been celebrating the visit.

''The Prime Minister's wife was emotional,'' sniffed a Fairfax report of her visit to Tarin Kowt military base, before expressing surprise that a first lady would visit such a place. Some people, it said, ''were puzzled that Ms Rein had joined her husband on the trip''.

News Corp papers were similarly perplexed, with The Daily Telegraph headlining its report: ''Therese Rein's Afghanistan war visit with Prime Minister Kevin Rudd attracts some flak''. Talkback anger ensued. It was all very predictable and very small-minded.

While it is true that the spouses of prime ministers rarely accompany their partners on such trips - Bettina Gorton went to Vietnam with husband John in the '60s during that conflict - I thought it a bit rich to criticise Rein for bravely overturning the tradition. Surely all that matters is the reaction of the troops, which, based on news footage of the event, seemed to be overwhelmingly positive, and that any risk be minimal.

That the troops enjoyed the visit is not surprising: as the date of their return home draws nearer there's a fear on the ground they will be forgotten in the interim. The Rudds' visit acknowledged their ongoing service.

The feedback since has been positive as well, according to the Australia Defence Association. ''The troops enjoyed talking to Ms Rein because it was like being visited by their mum,'' ADA executive director Neil James told me last week. It was meant as a compliment, with him adding: ''Remember, 50 per cent of the troops are under 25 and 75 per cent are under 30.''

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And a good many of them are women. What's more, they're used to seeing other women there. Whenever senior civilian or parliamentary visitors arrive, they invariably have female staff in tow. And then, of course, there are the visits of the commander-in-chief, Quentin Bryce, and those of recently deposed prime minister Julia Gillard.

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Clearly, the visit also lifted Rein's spirits. ''I'm really, really proud to have been able to shake the hands of some of these amazing people,'' she said, while mingling with our soldiers. Her emotional response probably had something to do with her history - she's the daughter of a war veteran and a war widow.

That Rein's presence and her motives were questioned was bad enough, but then some started in on her fashion sense. The Sydney Morning Herald highlighted the negativity of social media postings, before acknowledging: ''Ms Rein might have pointed out that a ride in a Hercules' belly, Afghan dust, 45-degree heat and a flak jacket hardly allow for sartorial splendour.'' Of course they don't (although Bryce seems to manage it). But what does it matter anyway?

Perhaps the visit would have raised fewer eyebrows if we weren't in the midst of a quasi-election campaign. Certainly it led to charges that it was all part of a public relations stunt. I thought it ran much deeper than that, though. It's obvious Rudd sees his wife as an electoral asset and why wouldn't he: she's an enormously successful businesswoman who's both vivacious and personable.

As someone noted last week about the visit to Tarin Kowt, if you were a soldier with the choice of chatting to her or her husband, you'd probably seek out Rein first. It's pretty clear to me, though, that Rein is part of a rare political partnership - she has enormous influence over the PM.

In that sense, the Rudds recall John and Janette Howard. It was widely acknowledged in political circles that Janette was pretty much an unelected member of the cabinet. Interestingly, if you visit the National Portrait Gallery in Canberra, there are plenty of portraits of prime ministers, but only one features a spouse as well. Yep, the Howards. (Janette never went with Howard to Afghanistan, but she did accompany him once on a visit to East Timor when Australia was part of a peacekeeping mission.)

Now that Rein has broken with tradition, a precedent of sorts has been established. Will there now be an expectation that if a prime minister visits a combat zone, their spouse or partner should be in tow? Worse, that a non-appearance might be perceived as a slight on the troops?

My expectation is that other first ladies - and blokes - will follow Rein's lead in the future, providing the visits are deemed safe and in the interests of the troops on the ground. That will, hopefully, lead to more mature reporting and a recognition that anything that lifts the morale of our young fighting men and women is to be applauded.